Do You Bicycle? Dedicated to the proposition that bike riding is good for you & fun. Commentary, links, news, opinion, reviews, stories, travelogue, & occasional heads up about events. Kiril Kundurazieff spreads the word & the word is BICYCLE!

February 14, 2005

Street Legal in Costa Mesa

When I finally, at long last, get around to checking out what the Municipal Code in my new hometown has to say about bicycling what do I discover?

Like most cities a license is required if you live in town:

Sec. 4-3. Bicycle license required.

No person residing in the City of Costa Mesa shall ride or propel any bicycle upon a public street, sidewalk, alley, bicycle, lane, path, or any public property, or have in his possession any bicycle which has not been licensed or which does not bear a bicycle license plate as required by the provisions of this chapter.

(Ord. No. 77-10, § 2, 3-21-77)

And, further more!

Sec. 4-4. Bicycle registration card; bicycle license plate issuance.

At the time that any person licenses a bicycle in accordance with the provisions of this chapter, the licensing agency or agent shall provide said person with a bicycle registration card bearing the owner's name, address, telephone number, bicycle license plate number, the bicycle manufacturer, type and frame number, and any other descriptive material concerning the bicycle deemed necessary by the licensing agency, together with information for the transfer of ownership of said bicycle. In addition, also at the time of licensing, the bicycle owner shall be issued his permanent bicycle license indicia bearing the unique number permanently assigned to that bicycle by the state department of motor vehicles. The bicycle license shall remain in effect for the period designated by the department of motor vehicles in accordance with section 39001 of the vehicle code.

(Ord. No. 77-10, § 2, 3-21-77)

Since I want to write about issues pertaining to local, county, state, and national law, and bicycling, it behooves me to be Street Legal in my own home town.

Off I dashed to my local fire station immediately!

The whole procedure was quick, and painless.And free! :-D

I have a license plate sticker, on my trusty steed, identifying the number as being a CALIFORNIA BICYCLE LICENSE, and a pink piece of paper with all the particulars about my bike, and me.

I then traipsed over to the local police precinct to ask a question:What is the cost of a ticket if a local copper decided to pass one out to the unlicensed?

I was told that such a piece of paper would essentially be a "Fix-it" ticket costing the miscreant a wopping $10 to take care of.The idea being that you go to the nearest fire station and get a license, then go to the police station with your proof of licensing so they can sign off on your ticket.

The cops can even give you a license, and even put a serial # on your bike if it doesn't have one, for the records.

One other thing I found out, that annoys me, is that it is apparently ok to ride your bike on the sidewalk in Costa Mesa.

No wonder I never saw cops stopping people from doing this dangerous practice!

Granted, preventing people from performing this stupidity is not a high priority for most police agencies, but still...

Encouraging this practice, on sidewalks not signed as being for such use, does nothing to promote safe cycling.

This blog was written from SanTana, Near the Orange Crush!More Stimulating BikeBlogging!

Proud to have been one of the BEST BikeBlogs in the USA, and the World: Jan. 2003 -Aug. 2010!

Do You Bicycle? Dedicated to the proposition that bike riding is good for you and fun. Commentary, links, news, opinion, reviews, stories, travelogue, and occasional heads up about events. An ordinary road cyclist spreads the word and the word is BICYCLE!

Dear Visitor: Most of the Cycling Resource Links that used to be in this sidebar are now on my other Blog, where I will continue writing about my adventures as a Bicyclist:Musings of a Mad Macedonian

AND LAST, BUT NOT LEAST...THE GREATEST HONOR THIS BLOG HAS EVER RECEIVED IN ITS HISTORY:

Nov. 12, 2010:

Thank you for honoring the shop I have grown up in and love. We are still an old time shop but are trying to keep up with the times with the Kopp's Cycle Website -- Charles Kuhn - Owner (Comment left here: Kopp's Selling Bikes since 1891 - A story I posted in March 2005, and he also replied to my Thanks with this: "You seem to be someone who experiences life while the rest of us just live."

Technorati

Riders Passing Thru

ATTENTION CORRESPONDENTS: E-mail sent to the blog e-mail addy, including those regarding postings/comments, and/or in response to correspondence with/from the author of this blog, are not considered confidential and may be shared online as I deem appropriate.

PERMISSIONS: Original Content of this blog is Copyrighted, and owned, by Kiril G. Kundurazieff, 2003 - Present...The Author has no problem with people excerpting a reasonable part of one of my entries in a post of their own, as long as attribution to him is made, and a link to his original post is included.